About Us

“I’ve attended different mental health services and I think that it’s so different from the places I went to. I didn’t finish the previous mental health services because it was not able to help me with the different situations. A lot of the places I went to, they couldn’t relate to what I have gone through, and some of the other places didn’t want to take the time to listen but looked at things I’m doing wrong. I felt like they’re not really hearing me. I felt judged before they heard what I had to say. Some were telling me I needed to take medication, so I said “yeah give me them”, and then they didn’t see me the next day because I’d blocked them. But with Kaimana, it was good for what others had to say. You want to know what people went through in their life. It felt good expressing how I felt and then taking turns to listen and really hear them out how they feel. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of our culture talking about mental health. Kaimana is the first to talk about culture tying into our lives. Never heard of us allowing ourselves to have these conversations about mental health and traditional ways”. -TT 02/22/2021

“In Kaimana Group, it helped me to practice vulnerability in a safe space without being judged. And to work on things collectively as a group. Two things that I learned while receiving these services is that it’s okay to be vulnerable, not a weakness; and, I can do hard things!!” -LM 06/15/2021

Kaimana was different in that it was a group setting and that it was different culturally. I learned tools that I would take with me my whole life and hand down to the generation afterwards. It was a group I could be myself and felt seen. MV 06/01/2021

Since graduating, I have had enough tools to use. I do feel like I’ve healed to a point where I no longer need the support so regularly. It kind of happened together at the same time. Kaimana helped me realize that healing takes time and it’s possible to do the work and especially with KCC and their experience. It’s nice to be able to be in that same space. It had a super impact for me because I was able to understand where I am on this journey and be able to have patience with myself and I’ll get there or maybe I’m already here. Helped me to contextualize my feelings. -SB 02/19/2021

The group is super helpful to be in with other people from the community because we’re not ashamed to talk about it (mental health), there are other community members trying to break generational curses, and it’s good to know what kind of stuff we all go through. I put mental health on hold a lot, and so this was me working on it with someone else and not doing it on my own. I grew up trying to figure stuff out on my own. I’m super hopeful that there is something like this. I want to refer it to my entire family to figure this out. I never heard of a group like this JM 02/11/2021

“I was impacted positively in that I was able to see myself represented in others walking the path that I so often feel like I am walking alone. Kaimana was different because it was in a group setting and there were culturally relevant tools that were helpful. It was the same in that I felt safe to show up fully as myself.” Anonymous 06/1/21

“It helped me to say what I thought I'd never be able to say out loud. Hearing the thoughts of the other group members was healing. I needed to hear their stories too. I would attend again for me to understand more how I can fix my dark thoughts. It helped me see that mental health can be cured.” Anonymous 8/10/21